Drizly Raises $2.5 Million In Additional Seed Capital

BOSTON, May 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — Drizly, the smartphone app for fast, convenient alcohol delivery, today announced that it has raised an additional $2.5 million in seed capital. The round was led by Continental Investors of Chicago, with participation from Gary Vaynerchuk through his new Vayner RSE fund, and Suffolk Equity, as well as participation from existing investors previously announced in January as part of the initial $2.3 million in seed funding.

The funding will be used to expand distribution of the Drizly service into new markets; build world-class user experiences and interfaces; increase operational capacity and customer service; and to drive customer awareness and acquisition.

Conceived by three classmates from Boston College in 2011, Drizly is like having a liquor store on your smartphone. With a huge selection of beer, wine and spirits, the best and biggest retail delivery network in the US, and the same prices as in the store, Drizly is bringing the consumer experience of buying alcohol at retail into the digital age.

“With thriving operations in four cities across the US, Drizly is fast becoming the Amazon for alcohol, known for selection, convenience and value,” said Nick Rellas, co-founder and CEO of Drizly. “Drizly has unique technology, the best team, and the right plan for making alcohol delivery a ubiquitous part of entertaining in the US. We are thrilled to partner with these world class investors to make it a reality.”

In addition to proprietary forensic ID verification technology, Drizly is the only service of its kind to receive explicit approval from the alcohol control boards in many of the states it does business in, effectively certifying that it is complementary to the three-tier system of selling alcohol.

“Drizly is a unique platform technology that is demonstrating a powerful ability to drive incremental consumer shopping and purchasing behavior while leveling the playing field of commerce. Nick and the team have the focus, discipline and technology to win big,” said Paul Purcell of Continental, who will be joining the Board as part of this financing. “We think it has a chance to be one of those market-defining mobile lifestyle apps like Uber.”

“With a focus on mobile and alcohol, and some strong strategic differentiators, Drizly was uniquely interesting,” said Vaynerchuk. “We are really excited to help the company get to the next level.”

ABOUT DRIZLY

Drizly is a mobile lifestyle app that is the most convenient way for smartphone users who drink to get their beer, wine and liquor. Consumers of legal drinking age simply download the app to their smartphone and with a few taps of the finger, the consumer’s favorite beer, wine or liquor is on its way, in just 20-40 minutes. Delivery drivers then authenticate and validate IDs using Drizly technology. Backed by a world-class group of angel and institutional investors, the company has raised $4.8 million to become the Amazon for alcohol in Boston,Chicago, New York City (Manhattan and Brooklyn), The Hamptons and other cities across the United States.